Forever and Always
by EllaRose93
Summary: This is a story about two angels and their love for each other and their love for God.  Please read and review even if you didn't like it.  Reviews will really help me because I am a new writer. Thank you!
1. Chapter 1

Twinkling, yellow stars floated among the clouds which hovered over the sleeping streets of Seattle. Nothing was ever quiet on a late Friday night in a bustling city, except in the wee hours of the following morning when parties came to an end and night shift workers came home. Deep within the city rested a darkened alleyway nestled between an aging diner and a rundown barbershop. Not a thing made a sound except the occasional roar of a passing car and the rapid breathing of a young man. This man had a tall stature, with a muscular build. His blue eyes screamed extreme sadness along with confusion and his face looked like it had gone with out shaving for days. His disheveled, black hair rested on his head matching his untidy clothes.

A pointed, shining blade fell from the man's shaking hands landing with a dull clatter on the cracked cement. He breathed in and out short breaths, in shock at what stood right before his eyes. He was not alone. A young woman in an elegant, white dress gracefully walked towards him. Although the alley was littered with broken bottles and other sorts of rubbish, she did not so much as wince as her bare feet moved with ease across the cement. The soft glow of a light from above illuminated her long, auburn hair which danced freely in the gentle breeze.

"I'm an angel, Henry," she said in a voice which resembled a kind, Irish accent.

"A what?" Henry said. This was only Monica. This was the woman who just started working for the company he did. He never knew angels existed. A delicate smile graced her lips. Henry noticed his breathing slowing down as he began to feel the warmth and comfort from the light which enclosed the angel's body.

"An angel," she said, "God has sent me here to be with you through this hard time in your life."

"God? What does he want?" Henry said. Anger was now in his voice. "He's the one who took her. With that, He took my life away as well."

"No, you, yourself took your life away. I don't know why God chose to take your wife and kept you here. But since then, you've turned to drugs, you've turned to alcohol, and now you want to take your own life."

"So what?" Once more, Henry breathed in and out rapid breaths as salty tears ran down his cheeks. He slowly backed his muscular build against a brick wall and sunk his knees into the ground.

"It's not your time," Monica said coming closer toward him, "When the Father is ready, He'll take you home. God gave you your life for a reason. Spend your time looking for that reason and don't destroy it more than you already have. Your wife is in heaven now. You should be glad of that."

"How can you be sure?" Henry asked. Once more a beautiful and gentle smile formed across the angel's face as the soft glow of a light from heaven poured into the darkened alleyway.

"You were once a great man, Henry," Monica said in her Irish accent, "You were once married to a beautiful woman who loved you and more importantly loved God with all of her heart. You just need to trust Him." She walked calmly toward him and placed her slender hand on Henry's shoulder who was now shaking silently on the cement with his head cupped between his fingers.

"God loves you. Trust that He will guide you through the changes you are about to make and live your life to the fullest." The angel bent down to pick up the silver knife that rested soundlessly on the ground. She turned it cautiously in her hand then threw it into the air. The blade formed into a pure, snowy-white dove which peacefully took wings and flew into the inky-black sky above.

Henry watched it, feeling a sense of hope and comfort within him. "So God is really there," he said, then looked to where the Irish angel was standing. But she was gone. His eyes searched his surroundings but she was nowhere to be seen. Henry sighed as he rose from the cement and began his journey home through the sleeping Seattle streets.

_God, _he prayed, _please forgive me what I've done. I believe and trust that you will help me figure my life out. I know it will be tough but I know you will guide me. Thank you, God. Amen._


	2. Chapter 2

The chains which clung tightly to swings creaked eerily in the playground the angel arrived in. The warm, summer breeze cooled her face as she let her bare feet ooze between the soft yet rough sand. At a time like this, the angel would normally relax and thank God for the privilege to help another person on the tiny earth He created. However, on this particular night, she wanted to get away as quickly as she could.

Monica was a caseworker who was sent by the Father to help humans who were at crossroads in their lives. They were people like Henry who she had helped just minutes before. Showing the love of God to others was something she enjoyed more than anything in the universe. She normally left the case feeling a sense of accomplishment. Tonight, however, something was different. She knew that Henry would learn to relive his life the right way. The angel still felt the sense of accomplishment, but it was also mixed with sadness. Even though she knew that Henry was not alone, she felt sorry for him. Monica knew God was always there to be with her but what if she had lost her closest friend on earth? Confusion struck her as she pictured two pools of luscious green on the gentle and kind face of her dearest friend, Andrew, the Angel of Death.

To an ignorant person, the Angel of Death would sound like a dark creature to avoid. Nevertheless, he was quite the opposite. His only job was to bring humans Home after long, fulfilling lives, although more recently the angel has worked in the same way she has- to bring love and truth to people who need it most. Monica felt her heart pound slightly harder in her chest as she thought of his gentle voice and uplifting words. A sudden, overwhelmed emotion spread throughout her tiny body as she had never felt this way before.

_What is happening?_ She loved Andrew dearly as a close friend, just as she loved her supervisor, Tess. Tess was a large, mocha-skinned angel who acted as a mother towards Monica, ever since she became a caseworker for her. But now, she felt her feelings for Andrew have become different. It was as if the feelings were something more.

The Irish angel's large, honey brown eyes gazed into the distance. She spotted Tess's red Cadillac in the playground parking lot and walked briskly toward it. She didn't know what to think. She couldn't quite put her finger on what she was feeling. _Are angels supposed to feel this way? _The thought repeated in her mind over and over again. All she knew was that she had to get out of Seattle. She climbed into the cool, leather seats and started the engine. It roared to life and blinding, yellow headlights shot boldly from the front of the car. Monica cautiously backed out of the blackened parking lot then began her journey away from the sleeping streets of Seattle.


	3. Chapter 3

Of every city in the United States, Seattle had to be the angel's favorite because of the abundance of coffee shops. The past week while in her human form on her assignment, Monica spent every free moment trying and experiencing every coffee shop she could find in the bustling city. She even dragged a reluctant Tess along on one warm, summer morning. She had warned Monica about the desires of the human body, however, warning Monica about anything is worthless. She was an angel who truly followed her heart and, more importantly, followed the word of the Lord. Nevertheless, on the days when the Father granted His angels with a day off to do as they pleased on the tiny earth, the Irish angel would be anywhere where coffee was to be had. And if not coffee, she would consume it in other ways- Coffee cake, coffee ice cream, mocha latte, etc.

However, Monica's mind was not on coffee at the present moment. The angel had the roof of the red Cadillac down, transforming it into a convertible. The warm wind roared past her pale face and ripped through her auburn hair as she drove out of the twinkling city. Slowly but surely the roads became darker as she drove on the highways between towns and cities. For a moment she stared in awe at the stars above, thinking about how amazing it was that God created each and every one of them. She wished that Andrew was sitting in the seat beside her admiring the stars as well.

Monica found herself driving more than an hours trip to Bellingham, Washington. Nestled between the waters of Puget Sound laid an often overlooked gem of the San Juan Islands. Lummi Island was such; It was made up of beautiful, country roads that winded in and out of green farms, towering pine trees, and gorgeous homes which faced the vivid, blue of the Puget Sound. Her plan was that when she arrived in Bellingham, she would take the ferry to the island. Settled against evergreen pine trees on the West side of the island stood a single, aging cabin. The cabin was a gift from the Father to His angels for whenever they were in need of relaxation and wanted to stay in human form on the Earth he created. He knew some of His angels preferred to come Home after particularly long and difficult assignments. However, He also knew some who loved humans and were fascinated by their way of life and therefore He made a home for them on Earth. This was where the angel was headed.

Monica continued to drive to Bellingham. It was long after midnight and the early morning air made her feel chilly in her tiny, human body. The roof on the red Cadillac was up and Monica slowly became lost in her silent thoughts. Before she knew it, approximately forty-five minutes had passed and the Angel saw no signs for Bellingham, Washington. _I have to be close_, she thought. She pulled into a gas station to fill up her car with fuel to finish her way to her destination. The bell at the small convenience store let out a high pitched _ding_ when she walked in to pay for her gas.

A young woman with long, black hair slouched in a chair behind the counter with her face behind a magazine.

"Excuse me?" Monica said in her kind, Irish lilt.

"What is it?" the woman said in a rude tone of voice.

"Pardon me for interrupting, but I'd like to pay for some gas." Monica inched her way closer to the counter and placed a twenty dollar bill on top of it. The woman lowered her paper and two black pupils glared at Monica directly in the eyes.

"Hello Monica," she said with an evil grin on her dark-skinned face, "I knew I would see you again."

"Kathleen," the angel said, "I should have known."

"Should have known what? Should have known that I'm the reason you are lost? That you can't find your way to your destination or the fact that I made you lost in thought about your precious Angel of Death?" Monica decided not to say anything as she turned to walk away from Kathleen. "I know what it is you want, Monica." Kathleen grabbed on to the angel's shoulder. Monica's head of auburn hair snapped around, only to see herself standing alone on a worn sidewalk. She was no longer at a gas station.

It was a crisp autumn day and golden leaves barely clasped on to branches. A simple breeze would sweep the leaves off and on to the grass. Monica stood in a neighborhood in front of a fenced yard. She heard the enthusiastic laughter of two children and the rustle of fallen leaves. The wee boy looked as if he was no older than four years of age and had silky locks of blonde hair on his head. The girl was slightly older- perhaps six years old. She danced around the yard letting her long, auburn hair fly through the autumn breeze.

Monica watched in silence for a few moments, satisfied with the children's joyfulness. Dazed in her thoughts, the angel was surprised when a man briskly ran to the front of the house, after the children.

"Andrew," Monica breathed his name. She wanted to run toward him but she was frozen in shock. Why would Kathleen take her to a house where Andrew was. Monica watched Andrew play with the children for what seemed like hours. The three tossed leaves at each other and buried themselves in the crisp, autumn colors. They laughed and giggled joyously as Andrew teased and tickled them. The Angel of Death played with the wee ones as if they were his own children. The little boy even looked like him. He had soft, shaggy blonde hair and deep, forest-green eyes. The girl on the other hand did not. She looked more like herself? _No that can't be it, _Monica thought. But her long, auburn locks reminded the angel exactly of her own.

The screen door on the front porch creaked open and a petite and slender woman walked through.

"Lunch is ready," she said in a gentle, Irish accent that Monica recognized as her own, "Tess and Sam, why don't you come in and wash up."

"Tess," Monica whispered under her breath. The children enthusiastically ran up the wooden porch steps and through the screen door that their mother had just walked through.

Monica's mind was racing as she watched herself and Andrew alone in the front yard. At this point, Monica noticed a large bump on her fake self's stomach. She was pregnant. The angel clutched her slender stomach to see if it was really there and was somewhat disappointed to find that it wasn't. Every emotion went through Monica's mind as she watched herself. It all felt so real. Could angel's live a human life? Andrew took the fake Monica's hand in his own and leaned in and brushed his lips across her own. As an angel, Monica had always wondered what it would be like to have a family.

"Having a family is quite a gift," Kathleen's sinister voice said from behind her. Monica's head spun back to reality. She was no longer in the cool, crisp autumn air, but now in the more stifling heat of a gas station on a summer night. Monica agreed, but wasn't sure if she wanted to admit it to Kathleen. She felt the heart beat in her human form increase as she thought of her and Andrew in that house. But no, angels can't have families. That job was for humans. Was Kathleen truly playing tricks on her or if not, why was she feeling this way?

_Father, please help me find my way safely to Bellingham, _she prayed, as she left the gas station and walked into the summer night.


End file.
